It’s Harder and Harder to Keep an Audience’s Attention Smart phones, tablets, laptops, email, text messages, Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest are just a few of the distractions we face when presenting to an audience. The answer is simple. Face your audience, speak passionately and intelligently to them, and watch for non-verbal feedback. The key is…

Guest post by Stephanie Scotti. With only seven seconds to make a good first impression, your audience is like a finely calibrated radar detector. The moment they sense you’re not sincerely interested in making an emotional connection (and believe me, they will pick up on it) they will instantly disengage. To avoid making a presentation…

Guest Post By Stephanie Scotti. When you speak in a professional setting, your biggest goal is to communicate your message as effectively as possible. Effective presentations don’t just happen they are planned and studied.  Here are a few steps to making your presentation effective: Be an expert.  Whatever topic you are planning to present, whether you are…

Guest Post By Stephanie Scotti. A client recently asked, “How do I control my urge to give more information than my audience needs?” Great (and very mindful) question! Consider this answer from authors Dan and Chip Heath in Made to Stick. They say that in an effort to be complete, we often feel obligated to…

Your presentation doesn’t have to end in the conference room. If you see your presentation as a “one-off” or a “hit and run” you are not utilizing its full potential. You need to broaden your focus. As Tom Szaky of TerraCycle said in a post for the New York Times, “One reason the presentations are…

Numbers…Lists…Bullets. Is Your Message Drowning in Data? PowerPoint Can Throw You a Lifeline. Even the most engaging speaker can lose an audience when a presentation is all numbers and data – that’s when a solid PowerPoint presentation design can become your greatest asset. Using visuals to illustrate your message and saving the bulk of your…

When preparing to impress potential investors, the way you choose to communicate your new business plan (or stress your ongoing record of success) can be as important as the content itself. A strong PowerPoint presentation of the right length, paired with a dynamic design, and well-rehearsed delivery can make the difference between securing investment capital…or…

A dynamic speaking style along with compelling animations, charts and typography is the best way to connect with your audience. Effectively-designed slides that complement what is being said can be a powerful combination that enables audience members to absorb and truly understand the content being presented. Here are some tips to showcase your personality and…

Giving a speech or presentation in public or in the boardroom can be a very stressful situation for just about anyone. When you give a presentation in front of others, it puts the spotlight on you, and you become more self-conscious and aware of your faults. Having this type of anxiety can cause you to…

How PowerPoint Presentations with Video Bring Life to a Meeting PowerPoint Presentations with video are changing the way executives present in high-stakes meetings. Incorporating video into an online presentation was once something only those with advanced PowerPoint skills could achieve. Thanks to PowerPoint 2010, video can now easily be added to a presentation to make…